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La Jornada Newspaper
Friday, November 1, 2024, p. 20

Port-au-Prince. More than 1,740 people were killed or wounded in Haiti from July to September, an increase of almost 30 percent compared to the previous quarter, according to the most recent figures released by United Nations (UN) officials.

The surge in violence comes as gangs control 85 percent of the capital Port-au-Prince – up from 80 percent previously – while a UN-backed mission led by Kenyan police to quell the Gang violence faces difficulties with lack of funding and personnel, which has prompted calls for a peace mission from the world body.

In the absence of representatives of the State, gangs increasingly assume more functions typically assigned to the police and the Judiciary, while imposing their own rules.warned the United Nations Integrated Office in Haiti (BINUH).

The 1,223 murders reported in the third quarter are largely attributed to gang violence, although law enforcement officials committed at least 106 extrajudicial murders, among whose victims were six children as young as 10, accused of passing information to gang members, BINUH noted.

Of the 106 extrajudicial murders, 96 were carried out by police officers and 10 by Jean Ernest Muscadin, public prosecutor of the coastal city of Miragoâne, in the south of the country. Overall, Muscadin is accused of having killed, since 2022, at least 36 people suspected of belonging to gangs or committing crimes. common crimessaid the BINUH.

A spokesperson for the Haitian National Police did not respond to requests for comment and Muscadin declined to comment and hung up when contacted by phone.

According to a UN Security Council report published on Monday, the gangs currently have about 5,500 members after recruiting mainly children who work as scouts, carry weapons and ammunition and even participate in combat. The report notes that up to 50 percent of all gang members may be children.

Most of the violence remains focused on the capital, Port-au-Prince, and the central Artibonite area, where dozens of people were massacred earlier this month.

Condemnation of Mexico

Mexico’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned violence in Haiti at the hands of gangs, particularly in the capital Port-au-Prince and the department of Artibonite. made a call so that Haitian political forces continue working to finalize the agreements reached in Kingston, Jamaica, which allow the holding of elections in 2025, the institutional strengthening and development that the population requires.

With information from Emir Olivares Alonso.